Synthetically natural fibers

In the long term, only high-quality cotton will resist competition from artificial fibers. Therefore, further research on the peculiarities of cotton, data that will be used to grow new varieties of cotton plants capable of producing high quality fibers and to adapt optimally to the climatic conditions of the place of cultivation are developing. Shirts of the best brands, elegant pants jeans, delgadísimo paper wrap, resistant awnings, bandages, fibers for dialysis... There are few materials of vegetable origin that are familiar with as much diversity of applications like fiber obtained from the cotton plant. This "white gold", appreciated worldwide, has been cultivating for already more than 7,000 years. Its fibers are spin and are used to produce fabrics. In the last year the main growing areas of the world - United States, Brazil, China, Pakistan, India, Turkey and Australia - produced almost 23 million tons of cotton, with a total value of more than 20,000 million euros. Cultivation of cotton in the bottle: Dr. Tony Arioli (left) and Dr. Marnix Peferoen examines a cultivated plant.

While the global demand for cotton grows year after year, it is also true that part of that demand is already covering with synthetic fibres. In 1992, the volume of the world market for synthetic fibres was identical to the cotton: both reached the 20 million tons worldwide. Since then, sales of synthetic fibers have almost doubled, while the cotton has only had a growth of approximately 15 per cent. This difference is not surprising given that synthetic fibres show clear advantages, especially for manufacturers. The quality of cotton is subject to large fluctuations, since it depends on the type of plant, area of cultivation and the harvest of each year; artificial fibers, on the other hand, are always equal so refers to length, color, shape and thickness. But for some time, it works around the world in the development of a special type of synthetic fiber for clothing to be so comfortable to wear as natural cotton. Only in the year 2000 came to market at least 16 new artificial fibres in which its creators explicitly emphasized the strong similarity between these creations and cotton in regards to comfort.